Week 12: 5 Lions to watch against the Redskins

The Detroit Lions hit the road to face the Washington Redskins. With the Lions missing quite a few key players and the Redskins one of the worst teams in the league, it could be a very close game. Here are five Lions to keep an eye on.

1. RB Bo Scarbrough

Scarbrough was a draft crush of mine and I was really hoping the Lions would get him. Fast forward to now and he looks on track to start two weeks in a row for Detroit. I guess it doesn’t matter how you get there, as long as you get there, right? Anyway, Scarbrough played a tremendous game in his debut last week. He had 57 yards after contact and totaled 55 yards for the game — showing that the Lions lack of blocking did not get in his way of doing it himself. Not only that, but he added a touchdown to his resume on the Lions’ first drive. Look for him to make a name for himself when he gets the opportunity.

2. CB Amani Oruwariye

Oruwariye finally got to see the field on defense last week when he played a total of nine snaps. What makes this a bigger deal is the Lions seem to be playing some of the younger guys now. I don’t think they have thrown in the towel on the year per se, but it seems they want to take a look at the rookies to see what they can do and if they need to further address some of these positions in the offseason. Maybe I am wrong and he’s earned his shot in practice but either way, the fans will get to see some of the future building blocks of the team.

3. S Will Harris

Harris has had some ups and downs this year but there have been more downs than anything. Not too unexpected from a rookie making the leap to the NFL, so I’m not here to bash the guy. Harris has shown a few flashes like we saw from Tracy Walker his rookie year. If Harris continues to get snaps, improve, and show improvement more often, maybe he can be the next Walker. If (big if) that happens, the Lions would be set at the safety position for the foreseeable future.

4. LT Taylor Decker

Decker may be playing for a job next year. The Lions selected to pick up his fifth-year rookie option next season, but they still could cut him at no cost. Decker has had a historically bad season when it comes to penalties as he set a new personal high for a season even though he has only played in nine games. As a rookie, Decker played all 16 games and only was called on six penalties. Seems like the rookie version of Decker had better discipline than the fourth-year pro Decker. He can’t continue to rack up the penalties, as well as continuing to give up sacks.

5. LB Austin Bryant

Speaking of trying to play rookies, Bryant just came off of the IR and should be ready to go. Bryant has been back at practice for the Lions for three weeks now and should have at least a decent grip on what’s going on. Bryant may have been my favorite pick for the Lions in the draft besides Hockenson, so it will be nice to see what he can do. He should be able to see some playing time and like all the rookies, I have no doubt he will do what he can to make a name for himself.